Is public transportation on Shabbat a true must?
Transport Ministry official rebuffs claims of high demands for weekend buses in Greater Tel Aviv area, says any change to existing transportation on Shabbat requires wide consensus
“The public needs to decide whether or not it wants public transportation on Shabbat,” Yehuda Elbaz, director of Public Transport in the Ministry of Transport, told Ynet last week.
“We haven’t really seen such a demand amongst the citizens," he added. "If indeed, there is such a public desire, then the current law needs to be changed, and we would need a public consensus in order to do that; but so far it doesn't look like the majority of the Israeli public is really interested in that."
The ministry, explained Elbaz, has yet to identify a strong desire for the move, even amongst most secular Israelis living in the Greater Tel Aviv Area, where such a service is believed to be in higher demand.
“In Haifa," he added, "the requests on Shabbat are clearer and so there is a public transportation service on the weekends as well,” said Elbaz.
Haifa enjoys several status quo ordinances which allow public transportation to run over the weekends, making it the only Israeli metropolitan in which the service is provided regularly and legally.
Riding the bus (Photo: Visual/Photos)
Despite his comments pertaining to transportation on Shabbat, Elbaz is aware of the fact that the optimal transportation solution includes service on Shabbat.
Many claim that without a regularized full-weekend service, public transportation will not become a fitting substitute for private vehicles. On the flipside, the claim is that without a regularization of public transportation on Shabbat, a demand for the service will not grow.
Elbaz noted that the main weekend requests are for a few hours after Shabbat’s entrance and a few hours before Shabbat’s termination, adding that service taxis are a great supplementary solution that must not be disesteemed.
Controversial issue
The issue of public transportation on Shabbat has caused bitter debates over the years. Just recently, MK Gilad Erdan (Likud) brought a private bill before the Knesset, asking it to widen public transportation services on Shabbat.“An answer must be provided for people who don’t have money, can’t but a car and go from one place to another,” said Erdan.
However, there are many people who disagree with Erdan’s outlook on the issue. Amongst them is Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz who said, “I will not assist in changing the status quo. This is a very touchy subject that balances between the needs of the nation’s various populations.”
